How To Read The Rapid Detect SDS

You’ve collected the correct specimen amount and you are about to see the results. Since you have already done the hard part, collecting the sample using the sponge applicator, you now need to insert the collector into the device, push it down into the chamber completely. This test really is easy to operate, but it’s important to know how to read the Rapid Detect SDS results.

If everything has gone well, the results can start to show up in about 2 minutes, but you should wait up to 10 minutes before recording them. No matter what the configurations you are testing for, the results panel should be displaying a line next to the letter “C” (which stands for control) to tell you the test is running fine. If a line does not appear next to the control, then you must presume the test as invalid and try a new drug test.

However, it’s a little different when you look at the drug results. Based on if the drugs you are testing for are in the sample, you want to see a line next to the drug abbreviation, as it means negative. If you do NOT see any lines appear next to the drug abbreviation on the test strip, that means the sample is non-negative (a.k.a. positive) for that drug.

Another question that may pop into your mind may be “does a faint line mean there is some drug present in the urine?” Yes it does! The presence of a test line, regardless of how faint, indicates a negative result. Even if there is some drug in the urine, if the line is present, the urine does have the MINIMUM amount of drug needed, therefore it should be considered positive.

With that being said, it brings up another reminder that if you have a drug test device that detects a wide variety of drugs (more than four); please understand that some strips might display more than a single drug result. In other words, you might see three or four drugs per strip, depending on the configuration you are using.